Genesis 1 again

We finished reading Esther, so we decided to read Exodus next. So we turned to Genesis 1 to get the context (it seemed the right thing to do at the time).

Catrin read the chapter. (In English, though she picked up a Welsh Bible first!)

And as she read I was struck again by the sheer ... majesty of the chapter.

It is so simple. No histrionics or grandiose effects. God spoke and it all came into being.

The seed-bearing vegetation. I love plants. I love fruit. Big long green cucumbers. Round melons like bowling balls. (Same family, aren't they?) Squishy, pulpy tomatoes. Fuzzy peaches. (There's a peach tree in the church garden that has white peaches. They're delicious! Ripened on the tree. OK, there's the occasional mite moving on the flesh - but hey, this is France. The mite gets eaten too.) Grapes. Bananas! Apples. And we haven't even started to get exotic yet.

It puts man in his place. We are really very good at destroying, but we can't create. Not create. We can manipulate things, change things, arrange things, but that's all.

But from his mind, from his word, springs this vast, rich, good diversity.

And the stars! "He also made the stars".

It shows how important man is.

Stars are big! Powerful! Distant! Amazing!

But they aren't people. Only mankind is made in God's image.

And fruit wasn't made for the stars!

As Catrin read "Let us make man in our image", Gwilym interjected "That shows that Jesus was there, too."

Comments

Anonymous said…
I well remember hearing a speaker say that a device that the Devil uses is to divert preaching from Genesis and Revelation as they, along with the gospels are what bring the most adverse attention to him, so he seems to convince people that they are too difficult to understand properly. There would seem to be some merit in that assertion though I have to say I have heard many sermons from Genesis. However, it does seem as though there is at least some reluctance on the part of some speakers to preach on the creation. Possibly not comfortably fashionable! What a shame: therein is revealed the total, awesome Majesty of the Godhead and the wonder of His creation, which to my mind at least,is being displayed more and more, day by day, as mankind discovers areas of His own 'big bang' brought about by the words of His mouth. How tremendous is that? I have difficulty in worshipping Him because I am aware that my mind can't get itself around His real magnificence and so my poor efforts at praise seem unworthy and stilted. Yet that's what He wants of me. Wow!

As for Revelation, well that's a different story. I do think we tend to fight shy of that and probably understandably so to some extent. Yet we have the opening chapter (Genesis) of the 'book' and it's incomplete, just unfinished, without the final chapter, whatever we make of it. It still points to God'S sovereignty and purpose.
12:40 pm
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